Seeing the Truth
by da-angel729
Summary: He was a fool. And he deserved this. He'd wanted to see Starbuck and Apollo in action. Well, now he was. And he wasn't sure what to think.


**Author's Notes: ** Written for **coldspace **at the **klficathon** with the following request: _Kara/Lee seen through someone else's eyes_. I own nothing but the plot; everything else belongs to Ron Moore, etc. As always, feedback and con crit appreciated!

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**Seeing the Truth**

When his older brother came to visit him at the Colonial Fleet Pilot Academy, Zak Adama realized Lee and Kara were closer than he'd thought and he was jealous of his brother. It was this last one that bothered him the most.

He didn't know, at first, why he was jealous of his brother. Of course, he wasn't as good a pilot as Lee, but then few people were. The Flight Instructors—minus Kara, who would never say such a thing to him—always commented how they'd never seen a pair of pilots better than Lt. Kara Thrace and Capt. Lee Adama. They had, the Senior Flight instructor had mentioned one day to the class, an almost innate ability to understand each other's movements.

Zak, on his way to have lunch with Lee, who was visiting him for a week, stopped abruptly as he noticed his brother and his fiancée. Kara and Lee stood outside Kara's office door, laughing.

Kara was grinning at Lee, who was grinning back. He'd never seen Lee smile like that—Lee was normally reserved. Like their father. Pushing that thought aside, Zak continued toward the office.

"Zak! There you are." Kara smiled at him. "I've invited myself to lunch. I haven't seen Lee in _forever_.

"It's only been two years, Kara, remember?" Lee started laughing. "You and Helo were completely drunk in Caprica City's nicest restaurant, there was an incident involving a rather large man you tried to fight, and you called me for a ride. From hack."

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Kara, smiling innocently, tapped a finger on her chin as she thought about it. "Helo and I are drunk a lot, Lee."

"Shall we get going?" Zak asked, suddenly annoyed. They were acting as if he wasn't even there. "I only have a two hour break."

He thought, later, that he should've known. Kara and Lee spent the whole lunch laughing, and talking, and reminiscing. And ignored him. He sat there, quietly, and watched them. It was an education.

Whenever Kara talked, Lee focused his attention on her, as if she were the only person in the room. He would lean forward, slightly, and angle his body toward her as he listened intently. Zak wondered if Lee was even aware of this. Kara didn't seem to notice. Zak realized she didn't notice because she was used to it.

When Lee talked, Kara would look directly at him, but slightly below eye level. She would smirk, as if she didn't quite believe what he was saying, and then laugh when Lee grinned at her. Zak thought he knew almost everything about Kara, but he hadn't realized she knew his brother quite so well.

If he was the jealous type, he'd say they loved each other. He didn't know if it was the kind of love he and Kara shared, but it was there. He felt awkward and out of place, something he 

didn't relish, as the two people sitting with him were his brother and fiancée. The air around the table the three of them were sitting at was thick with tension. He sighed and stood up, announcing, "I have to get to class."

"I have to go, as well," Kara announced, standing up. "Lee, the other flight instructors thought it might be interesting for us to give a demonstration of our superior flying skills to the cadets in about an hour. What do you think?"

"Showing off is something you enjoy, Kara, but if you really want me to, I will." Lee looked up at Kara, then Zak.

Kara nodded. "Great. I'll see you then."

Zak shrugged. He didn't care. Zak knew his brother was a great pilot. Besides, he was anxious to see these two in action.

--

He was a fool. And he deserved this. He'd wanted to see Starbuck and Apollo in action. Well, now he was. And he wasn't sure what to think.

Standing in the observation room of the Flight Simulator, Zak watched the flying on the screen and listened to the wireless traffic between Kara and Lee. The Flight Instructors had been right—they really did have an innate sense of each other's movements. It was eerie, the way they instinctively knew where the other pilot would fly, and how long it would take them to get in a new position.

Kara kept a constant stream of chatter flowing through the headsets—mostly derogatory comments about Lee's flying ability. Lee either ignored her or insulted her flying. But the cadets watching the two pilots didn't catch the undertones. All they saw were the two best pilots to graduate from Flight School doing some spectacular flying.

Zak did.

Whenever Kara would drop into a sharp dive, or appear to fly a little too close to an obstruction, Lee's voice would sharpen over the transmitter, as if all his attention was focused on her. But Zak didn't know how that could be, because Lee managed to take out three Cylon Raiders during one of Kara's dives.

It was different with Kara, though. Her voice, usually sharp and abrasive, drawled when Lee was in danger. She didn't appear to care at all. But Zak knew her well, and she'd used that same drawling voice when he'd been in danger on the Flight Simulator.

They'd been flying for a half hour when a Cylon Raider slipped past Kara, who'd flipped the Viper to attack a Raider behind her, and blasted Lee's Viper before he could attack the Raider.

"Frak!" That was Kara's voice, shaking slightly. No one but Zak appeared to notice. "For frak's sake, Lee, we've done that maneuver a hundred times!"

"Not in four frakkin' years, Kara." Lee's annoyed voice cut through the wireless, sharp as a knife. "Which is about how long it's been since we've flown together. I'm out of practice, that's all."

"Too much time at frakkin' War College. You should fly more."

"Kara, I happen to _like_ War College. I haven't even been in hack yet."

"You were only in hack _twice_ at Flight School, Lee." Kara's voice was suddenly full of laughter.

The program was shut off before Lee could reply. Which was a good thing, Zak knew, because Kara and his brother were being unprofessional in a training environment. As fully commissioned officers, they were supposed to set a good example. But Kara felt the cadets would either behave or they wouldn't, and nothing she did would change that. He wondered if Lee felt the same way, but couldn't imagine it.

Zak, distracted by the thought of what would land his by-the-rulebook brother in hack, didn't notice Kara and Lee climb out of the simulators. The crowd of cadets watching clapped loudly, bringing his attention back to them. Kara swaggered; Lee looked embarrassed. But he smiled at the crowd, put his hand on Kara's back, leaned down to whisper something, and when she nodded, they walked out of the room.

He didn't want to know what it meant. After observing them together, Zak was pretty sure his brother was in love with Kara. And she loved Lee, too, in some way. It had been obvious; not only in the way they interacted all day but the genuine affection he'd heard in the simulator underneath the jabs at each other.

He was jealous of his brother. He didn't know why. He had Kara; Lee didn't. But there was _something_/i Maybe they didn't even know it.

But Zak did.

Frak.


End file.
